Reviews

Island of the Lost: Shipwrecked at the Edge of the World by Joan Druett

sarahsipple's review

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adventurous informative medium-paced

2.75

wintrovia's review

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5.0

A fascinating non-fiction account of two different shipwrecks on the same remote island. One was a story of human ingenuity and resourcefulness in the face of incredible adversity and the other was a horrendous mess. The contrast between the fortunes of the two groups of men made this book a great read and made me ponder deeply about what group of sailors I would most be like in a similar situation. While I would hope to meet disaster with creativity and resolve, I also fear I might crumple and try to eat my fellow shipmates at the first sign of a food shortage. The writing style of this book was unfussy, which meant the story of the men involved was allowed to shine through without needless fluff or hype. I'd have liked to have read more about the more disastrous group but I suppose it stands to reason that they also did a poorer job of keeping records as well as messing up everything else about their survival attempts.

csgiansante's review against another edition

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4.0

Engaging and detail oriented, it makes for a really neat comparative story.

rcgrimes's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

4.25

allison_f_2023's review

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adventurous informative medium-paced

4.0

mrsgrievous's review against another edition

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adventurous informative medium-paced

4.0

sarakoopa's review

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5.0

Very enjoyable.

mmotleyu's review

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3.0

Such a great premise but kinda boring. Read for book club

clarezar's review

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adventurous informative slow-paced

3.0

readwithbri's review

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3.5

β€œπ‘―π’–π’π’ˆπ’†π’“ π’Šπ’” π’„π’†π’“π’•π’‚π’Šπ’π’π’š 𝒂 π’ˆπ’π’π’… 𝒔𝒂𝒖𝒄𝒆.”

(I gotta admit, I thought there would be more cannibalism)

Read this for:
⛡️ the true tale of how two concurrent shipwrecked crews marooned on the opposite sides of the same desolate, hostile, subantarctic island have wildly different experiences
🧼 an incredibly well researched account of remarkable ingenuity in the face of extreme crisis and vastly contrasting leadership/collaboration styles (and the consequences of each)
🦭 soooo much seal & sea lion killing


If you like survival accounts, maritime tales, and stories about the power of the human spirit, resilience, and strength of working together, even in the face of unimaginable horrors… this one will *float your boat*